Abstract:

The paradigmatic view of new knowledge creation is grounded in its epistemology that knowledge is explicit and tacit in nature and its ontology is pillared in the knowledge-creating entities consisting of people at individual, group, organisational and inter-organisational levels,. This model is human-enabled by socialisation, externalisation, combination and internalisation (SECI) framework rather than technologically-enabled (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995; Nonaka, Konno & Toyama, 2001). Drawing on the findings emerged from a case study research on two multi-national corporations in the automobile industry, one in Canada and one in Japan, this paper reports on the creative processes enabling new knowledge creation. The research was informed by Nonaka and Takeuchi’s (1995) and ongoing theories of knowledge creation which are also discussed in light of the findings. Using a phenomenological qualitative methodology, curiosity, emotion and imagination emerged from the data as providing insights not currently in the literature on new knowledge creation.

Keywords:

New knowledge creation, curiosity, emotion, imagination, ‘Ba’, knowledge management.